Grants and Funding

Winter support for voluntary and community sector organisations

A number of grant funds are available to voluntary and community sector (VCS) organisations to help them with the rising costs they are facing to enable them to continue support residents this winter.

The grants available are:

• £500 for organisations registered as a Winter Wellbeing Hub.
• £200,000 fund to support VCS to help with rising costs.
• £200,000 fund for organisations providing free and low-cost food and other essential items.

Visit www.newcastle.gov.uk/vcswintersupport to find out more and make application.

Support for business during the Covid-19 pandemic

Please see our coronavirus information pages for support for businesses affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, including funding.

We also have a specialist team who can provide support during this difficult time. Please:

• email business support

Our team will be in touch within two working days.

Ward funding

Each ward in Newcastle has funding available for projects that benefit the local community.

All the information you need to apply for Ward Committee funding is on this page.

Please note that to ensure that applications can be dealt with as quickly as possible all applications should be sent by email.

Staff are currently working from home and do not have access to post which is sent to the office. The staff team who deal with grants are also involved in the Council's response to the coronavirus so pressure of work may mean that it will take longer than normal to process applications. We will process applications as quickly as we can but please try to get applications in well in advance of your project start date to allow time for your application to be processed and considered.

Application deadline

Applications for 2022-2023 must be submitted by 31 December 2022

We are now accepting applications for ward funding for 2022-2023. Applications can be submitted at any time during the year, up until 31 December. Applicants should be aware however that ward budgets may be fully spent before the end of the year. It is therefore better to submit applications earlier in the year, if possible.

Please also note that applications are not normally considered between the end of December and the Annual meeting of Council at the end of May so if you are planning activities during this period you should submit your application before the December deadline.

The application form may be downloaded using the link in the how to apply section below.

Please try to ensure you submit your application at least 28 days before the funding is required to allow time for your application to be processed and considered.

The Ward boundaries changed in May 2018. If you are not sure which ward to apply to you can find more information about wards on the My Neighbourhood section of the website.

How to apply for funding

• Download the application form
• Save the application form on your computer and fill it in.
• Email the form and any attachments to wardgrantaid@newcastle.gov.uk

Please note that all applications should be sent by email. Staff are currently working from home, and are not able to access post which is sent to the office. There may be significant delays in dealing with any applications sent by post.

Please Note: If you are applying on behalf of a public sector body such as the Police, NHS or a school please contact wardgrantaid@newcastle.gov.uk and ask for a copy of the public sector form.

Before filling in the form please consider the following points:

• Whether the ward(s) you are applying to have enough money to fund your request. Information about this can be found below.
• whether your project is eligible for funding.

To be eligible for Ward Committee funding applications must:

• Be for projects which are primarily for the benefit of people in no more than four Newcastle Wards. Citywide projects or projects covering a large part of the city will not be considered.
• Be from a constituted community or voluntary group, public sector body or a not for private profit organisation. We cannot fund individuals or businesses
• Not be for projects that campaign on matters of public policy or which seek to promote religious or party political activity.
• Contribute to the delivery of the Council’s priorities or any priorities agreed by the ward(s) you are applying to, scroll down the page to see the ward priorities.
• The Council's corporate priorities are:

- Employment – creating more and better jobs
- Education and Skills – the best learning opportunities for all
- Environment – a clean, green, safe Newcastle
- Health and Social Care – a healthy, caring City
- Housing – building more, and better, homes

Please refer to the Guidance Notes for more information.

The rules and procedure for ward committee funding are set out in the Ward Committee Funding Procedure.

The Newcastle Fund

If you are looking for larger amounts (up to £50,000) or if your project is citywide rather than local you may wish to consider applying to the Newcastle Fund. The Newcastle Fund is the Council’s primary grant giving programme for VCS organisations

The Fund was introduced in 2011 and replaced a number of different grant aid programmes across the Council.  It provides monies to voluntary and community sector organisations based in the City for project-specific running costs or core costs.

Contacts

Adam Taeger
 Communities Officer
 Communities Team
 2nd Floor, Civic Centre
 Barras Bridge
 Newcastle upon Tyne
 NE1 8PN
 Phone: 0191 277 7523

Email: wardgrantaid@newcastle.gov.uk

Ward Budgets for 2022-2023

The budgets for some wards include money that was not spent in the previous two years due to Covid. The unspent balances have been added to this year's budget allocations. 

How is the budget allocation for each ward calculated?

The ward budgets have two parts. The main part of the budget comes from general Council funds, a smaller amount comes from the Housing Revenue Account (Council house rents). The housing money is divided between the wards in proportion to the number of Council homes in each ward. The money from the Council's general funds is split between the wards using a formula:

10% of the total is evenly divided between the 26 wards

20% of the total is divided between the wards based on the population of each ward

70% of the total is allocated between the wards on the basis of deprivation. Deprivation is measured using the English Indices of Deprivation which are national statistics produced by government. More information about the Indices of Deprivation can be found on the Government's web site.

Please Note: In addition to the new budget allocations for this year ward committees were permitted to carry forward any money remaining unspent at the end of 2021-2022 and add it to their 2022-2023 allocation. The reason for this is that due to the pandemic many of the projects that might normally apply for funding did not go ahead last year so many of the wards were unable to spend their budgets before the end of the year.

Ward Priorities

As wards agree their priorities they will appear in the table below. If you wish to discuss the ward priorities please contact Adam Taeger in our Communities Team. Until ward priorities are agreed wards will consider any applications that contribute to delivery of the Council's overall priorities.

Arthur's Hill: 

• Promoting environmental activities (green and clean)
• Community safety
• Promoting financial inclusion
• Support to children and young people 

Benwell and Scotswood:
•Environment and beautification of the ward
•Support to small local groups in the ward

Blakelaw:
•Getting Blakelaw Working
•Local Environmental Quality and Green Spaces
•Fear of Crime
•Children and Young People

Byker:
•Getting Byker Working – Increase the number of residents that are employed, tackling the barriers to gaining skills, training and employment.
•Education – Make sure children are at school, achieving well, getting the right support and help to achieve their aspirations
•Decent Neighbourhood’s – Clean & tidy pathways and streets.
•Investing in Children – Ensuring children have an opportunity to exercise their rights as young citizens living, learning and playing in Newcastle.  As active members of their community the views of children and young people should be taken seriously.
•Welfare – Support for people on low incomes and out of work, benefits advice and welfare support to help people with their daily lives and in seeking gainful employment.
•Health and Wellbeing – Support initiatives to tackle health inequalities in the ward
•Byker Old Town - The Ward Committee recognises that this neighbourhood in particular has missed out on investment programmes in the past As such the committee has made the case to the Council and other partners that this area in particular needs inward investment.

Dene and South Gosforth Ward:
•Environment
•Health and Wellbeing
•Community Network

Denton and Westerhope:
•Activities for children and young people including places for children to play safely
•Activities which provide opportunities for older people to develop and maintain social connections and offer mutual support and promote inter-generational activities and cooperation
•Tackling anti-social behaviour
•Local Environmental Quality – Particularly regarding clean and tidy streets
•Support and enhancement to local community buildings including West Denton Community Centre and West Denton Indoor Bowls.

Elswick:
•Regeneration of Elswick
•Health and Wellbeing
•Young People
•Environment

Gosforth:
•Environment: clean and tidy streets, play areas and green spaces
•Transport: efficient networks for road users, including cyclists, and pedestrian safety
•Community Networks: Supporting local projects and encouraging active citizenship
•Community Assets: supporting the continuing success of our vibrant High Street

Heaton:
•Working together to keep local streets and lanes clean and tidy
•Supporting our local parks, open spaces, planters and greening activities
•Supporting all our communities across the ward and across the age range
•Celebrating Heaton’s great high streets, arts and culture scene

Kenton:

• Maintaining the environment
• Education and training
• Crime and community safety
• Promoting financial inclusion

Kingston Park South and Newbiggin Hall:
•Supporting young people into education, employment, training
•Promoting environmental activities
•Supporting local community buildings
•Prevention of substance / alcohol misuse / educating residents
•Adult education

Lemington:
•Making Lemington a nice, safe place to live and increase residents' satisfaction with living here
•Tackling inequalities - a fair deal for Lemington residents - focussing on health and social inclusion
•Decent neighbourhoods - clean and tidy streets and open spaces
•Children and young people - including childcare

Manor Park:
•Environment:  Green, open space and spaces to play.  Traffic and parking.
•Create and Strengthen Community Networks:  Create and support community networks, support existing community groups, support for children and young people, create opportunities for new groups and initiatives to evolve.
•Safety:  Safety, Access and availability of activities in the Ward, reducing social isolation for elderly residents, volunteering in the community

Monument:
•Community building
•Green and clean
•Financial inclusion

North Jesmond:
•Community engagement and communication
•People's safety and anti-social behaviour
•Clean streets and green spaces

Ouseburn:
•Environment – People care about how Ouseburn looks they would like to see a reduction in fly tipping and dumping in back lanes and clean and tidy streets that everyone can enjoy. They want to see access to good quality green space and parks across the ward protected and improved including Heaton Park, City Stadium and Ouseburn valley.
•Activities for Young People – People want to see positive activities for young people, to ensure they are not on the streets, and to help raise their confidence and skills to widen future opportunities.
•Reduce Social Exclusion and Social Isolation – People want to ensure appropriate local services are available including for emerging new communities and older people. They also want to bring communities together to support each other to reduce isolation and combat loneliness.
•Community Safety - People would like to feel safe and see a reductions in incidents of Anti-Social Behaviour and late Night noise.
•Parking – People have highlighted that increased car ownership, high levels of multiple occupancy properties in some neighbourhoods and commuter parking due to proximity to City Centre have all increased pressure on parking within the ward.

South Jesmond:
•Keep South Jesmond clean and green
•Keep South Jesmond safe and healthy
•Keep South Jesmond a great place to live

Walker:
•Walker football
•Sheltered accommodation
•Walker park
•Community groups
•Environment
•Young people
•Play schemes
•Administration and contingency

Walkergate:
•Flooding around the ward (Benfield Rd, Jasmine Cl, Courtfield Rd)
•Speeding traffic and inconsiderate parking
•Environmental quality
•Older residents
•Youth unemployment
•Better local shopping facilities

West Fenham:
•Children and Young People
•Environment – cleaner, greener, safer
•Support to community projects
•Health and Wellbeing

Wingrove
• Clean and tidy streets
• Support for people on low incomes
• Community safety
• Support to children and young people